Conventional whisks include a handle and a bundle of shafts, which make up an “active part” that extends from the handle. The active part generally is pear-shaped and designed to optimize mixing ingredients.
After a user discontinues using a conventional whisk, the user generally places the whisk within the mixing bowl, rests the whisk across the top surface of the bowl, or places the whisk on a plate of some sort. One problem with placing the whisk outside the container, such as on a plate, is that mixed ingredients remaining on the whisk's active part drip off onto the plate and, thus, become unusable. If the whisk is placed within the bowl, it is likely that the whisk will slide down (i.e., fall over) thereby causing the whisk's handle to contact the ingredients being mixed.
In an attempt to avoid the aforementioned problems associated with using conventional whisks, additional supporting elements have been designed that allow the user to attach the whisk to the rim of the bowl when not in use. Unfortunately, such items generally are intended for utensils that have long thin handles, such as serving utensils, and therefore are poorly suited for use with whisks. Moreover, these devices often are not in easy reach of a user, and sometimes are simply forgotten about or get lost. Still further, using these types of supporting elements, including positioning them on the container or bowl and their subsequent removal after use, complicates and extends the mixing operation.
Another technique that attempts to address the foregoing problems is to include an open-ended hook on the utensil's handle. After the utensil is used, its hook may be placed on the edge of the bowl or container so that the utensil conveniently hangs down from the side of the container. However, such hooks generally are designed for utensils with long thin handles and typically only for those utensils that are used to serve food, such as ladles and spoons. Unfortunately, hooks are ill-suited for whisks for at least two reasons. First, whisks generally have a relatively short handle and thus it is too easy for the user to grab the hook, and thus hurt oneself, when grabbing the whisk. Second, a whisk is used to stir ingredients within a bowl or other receptacle and thus requires strong, fast movement, which also may result in injury to the user during use if an open-ended hook is placed on the whisk's handle.